We don’t need no educator

The role of the teacher in today’s online education

Stephen DownesNFF konferansen, 14 November 2011

Oslo, Norway

“…the single most important factor affecting student achievement is teachers.”

http://www.epi.org/publication/books_teacher_quality_execsum_intro/

So we’re told, anyway…

In fact there numerous factors: parental income & educational attainment, social factors & expectations, social equity, genetic predisposition…

That aside, if we just look at educators, we see dramatic changes in the traditional role of the educator… as though the educator is disappearing

1.Pull apart the roles of the educator in an online world

2.Identify those roles in the context of the massive open online course

3.Provide practical examples and applications

Today’s Three-fold Task:

A historical trend…

… will continue today

The context….(connectivism)

• Educators are no longer ‘the experts’

• Learning is no longer about content transfer

• Teaching takes place in an authentic environment

• Learning consists of engagement, experimentation and communication

http://change.mooc.ca

The Roles….Teacher asExpert

Teacher as Learner

Teacher as Coach Teacher as

Designer

1

http://www.downes.ca/opml.xml

http://reader.google.com

http://www.tweetdeck.com/

#hashtag

http://learnonline.wordpress.com/2007/09/20/10-minute-lecture-george-siemens-curatorial-teaching/

http://ds106.us/

http://change.mooc.ca/newsletter.htm

http://bit.ly/sfnEF6

2. Designer

2

http://grsshopper.downes.ca/

http://ds106.us/ds106-radio/http://www.downes.ca/edradio.htm

http://bit.ly/qxkXTX

3

http://www.feynmanonline.com/

http://www.downes.ca/post/44760

http://www.scoop.it/t/edumooc/

https://plus.google.com/

http://www.slideshare.net/choconancy/change11-mooc-session-october-31

http://change2011inbendigovictoriaaustralia.blogspot.com/

The Conversationalist

4 expert

4

http://www.downes.ca/me/presentations.htm

http://change.mooc.ca/recordings.htm

http://cogdogblog.com/

http://www.livestream.com

http://fm.schmoller.net/

https://www.ai-class.com/

http://erikduval.wordpress.com/2011/11/08/the-speed-of-tech-owd11/

http://www.learninganalytics.net/

http://www.downes.ca